A Closer Look at Payday Loan Borrowers

Payday loan borrowers aren’t ignorant, writes Milwaukee Journal Sentinel columnist Patrick McIlheran.

“These are not sheep for the fleecing. By definition, you need a paycheck and a checking account to get a payday loan, so these aren’t the unbanked. They’re less likely to be high-school dropouts (but also less likely to be college grads) than Americans on the whole. Typically, they’re young families with kids, cars and apartments, earning $30,000 to $40,000 a year. Half have credit cards.” Read the column and McIlheran’s blog post, “Payday borrowers: They’re gosh-darn Republicans!”

Anchor Names New Chief Risk Officer

Martha M. Hayes is the new chief risk officer for Madison-based Anchor Bank. The hiring of Hayes is “part of an ongoing effort to ensure the highest standard of credit quality in every loan it makes,” the bank said. Hayes is the former president and managing director of Merrill Lynch Business Financial Services in Chicago. Read more in the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel or the Milwaukee Business Journal.

WHEDA Offers Home Improvement Loans

Home improvement loans for up to $10,000 are available to homeowners who have mortgages through the Wisconsin Housing and Economic Development Authority. Read the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel article.

Economist: ‘Not Even Close’ to Great Depression

“We have to put things in perspective. Some compare this recession to the Great Depression. It’s not even close,” said Terry Fitzgerald, a senior economist and assistant vice president at the Federal Reserve Bank in Minneapolis, in the Hudson Star-Observer.